Dr. Tracy Jackson completed medical training at the University of North Carolina, graduating summa cum laude. She then did a surgical internship and an anesthesiology residency at UNC as well, where she served as chief resident. After a brief stint doing anesthesia in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, she decided that treating pain was her calling, and went to Stanford to complete a fellowship in chronic pain management. She took this newfound fascination for an evolving field and took a job at Vanderbilt University, where she is currently an associate professor of anesthesiology and pain medicine. While there, she created and directed their pain fellowship training program and served as associate medical director of the outpatient pain clinics.

She also quickly learned that the epidemic that is the leading cause of accidental death in Tennessee and the United States isn’t an infectious disease – it is opioid overdose. And these opioids come mainly from doctors treating chronic pain. That started her on an odyssey of advocacy, leadership, research, and education to address this issue. She has co-authored guidelines for responsible opioid prescribing in conjunction with the Tennessee Department of Health, is on the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Pain Society, and has lectured extensively both nationally and internationally about chronic pain syndromes and alternatives to ineffective opioid-centric management strategies. But it still isn’t enough.

It dawned on her there is a big picture problem with how we all think about chronic pain, and the health care systems in which we work and seek care are not set up to address it. So, her path took another detour to help figure it out. She went and got additional certification in medical acupuncture and yoga, and worked closely with the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine at Vanderbilt, to better understand and study “alternative” methods to deal with chronic pain. Now, from this unique vantage point of “East Meets West,” she is working to develop new functional rehabilitation programs going forward, in both clinical and non-clinical settings. Instead of solely doing things to patients, like prescribing pills and performing procedures, these programs combine the best evidence and best providers from all approaches to work with people to help reduce medication use and improve pain, sleep, mood, and function…while reducing health care costs. Relief Retreats is that program.

She is also starting a non-profit organization, camPAIN.org, to provide scholarships for patients to attend functional rehabilitation programs nationwide; to advocate for insurers and hospitals to provide these services to everyone who needs them; to educate the public and health care providers about chronic pain both here and abroad; and to further research on effective, non-opioid strategies for managing chronic pain, both here and abroad.

Kerri is an Integrative Health Coach, Instructor of Integrative Health and Mind Body Practices Education at UW-Milwaukee and a Speech Language Pathologist. She regularly lectures at local Universities for Healthcare students in the art of listening, presence, power of the mind and resilience. Currently she is lecturing to the Veteran Administration Medical Staff on the benefits of Whole Health In Your Practice with an emphasis on self-care. Kerri has more than 20 years of leadership and rehabilitation experience, including over 15 years studying Integrative Healing Practices. She is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Center for Spirituality and Healing Program and currently studying with the Center For Mind Body Medicine.
Kerri provides health coaching to teenagers, university students and adults in the area of everyday life situations, self-care, health and overall well-being. She believes that when people are provided a healing environment in which to share their situation and concerns, they are able to find a new perspective and level of personal empowerment to be with it, integrate it in their life and move forward.
She incorporates self care, mindfulness, guided imagery, breathing techniques, creative healing practices into her sessions.
The goal of her forward thinking, solution-based practice is to guide clients to a fresh perspective and heightened awareness that can lead them to greater personal empowerment and fulfillment to achieve a more balanced, joyful sense of self.

Julie Richard has been a practicing physical therapist since 1982. She has extensive experience and education in the treatment of spinal and extremity pain in multiple joints and muscles, postural syndromes, arthritis, myalgias and complex regional pain syndromes. Julie utilizes a combination of therapy approaches including, manual therapy, (visceral, myofascial release, desensitization and soft tissue), therapeutic exercises, proper posture, body mechanics, ergonomics, aquatic therapy, cardiovascular conditioning, weight training, McKenzie principles, graded motor imagery and patient education regarding compassionate daily self-care strategies to promote healing. She uses health coaching strategies for individual goal setting with each client, to advance them in reaching their functional daily goals as well as long term ones and to become confident to perform an independent safe home exercise including a fitness program. Julie wants her clients to be educated in the daily healthy movements , proper posture choices and energy conservation strategies they have available to do regularly, as needed, safely, with quality and mindfully working towards their goals. Some of Julie’s strengths are being an active listener, working along with her clients to include their story in the development of their PT treatment plan, looking at the whole person compassionately, using kinesiology in restoring normal movement patterns, being able to provide client education about the physiological benefits of normal movement using visualization and in understanding the fight and flight response, education about neuroplasticity and how to restore and utilize mind-body connections in their healing, all in a safe environment. Julie believes physical therapists are movement specialists.

Julie received her B.S. in Physical Therapy from the University of Tennessee Center for Health Sciences, Memphis, Tennessee. She currently is and has been a member of the American Physical Therapy Association for the past 36 years along with holding memberships in the Aquatic and Orthopedic Sections of the APTA. She currently is and has been a CPR Instructor for the past 27 years and an Advanced Credentialed Clinical Instructor through the APTA. In recent past, she was a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), 2002-2014.

Greetings and welcome. I am an integrative clinical health psychologist and co-founder and former director of behavioral medicine at the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine at Vanderbilt Medical School.

Recently having moved to the LA area, I am currently working on a book on bringing the sacred back into the healing room, I am a consultant to many academic integrative centers across the country, and I have an active clinical practice.

On the national level, I have been the co-chair of the clinical committee of the consortium of academic health centers of integrative medicine and I have been the psychologist representative for the task force developing core competencies for integrative pain medicine.

With over 25 years of experience working with distressed physicians/healthcare professionals, as well as children, teens, and adults suffering with chronic illness, chronic pain, and other sorts of trauma, I incorporate creativity, mindfulness-based practices, creative arts, narrative therapy, the natural world, spirituality, dream work, play, and group (heart council) work as key elements to easing suffering.

The guiding principle for my work is encouraging a deepening relationship with the innate gifts of one’s own soul and I am honored to accompany so many on their sacred journey.

You can learn more about me here: www.tobifishelsacredjourneying.com